I have soooooo many thoughts about this as you know but I'd love to commend you for creating the term "dignity comedy" which is something that should be added to the film community lexicon immediately. It's definitely something I've felt for a long time, mostly in sitcoms. I feel like a lot of these movies view making a person a fool as some kind of sociological revenge - as you say, it's about righting the wrongs of hateful representation. But then there's someone like John Waters who makes women and queer people the fool while simultaneously accepting/celebrating why their differences. Of course, to do this, to do what John Waters does, is to run the risk of offending modern sensibilities or just flat out disgusting someone which ultimately makes his works more niche.
I have soooooo many thoughts about this as you know but I'd love to commend you for creating the term "dignity comedy" which is something that should be added to the film community lexicon immediately. It's definitely something I've felt for a long time, mostly in sitcoms. I feel like a lot of these movies view making a person a fool as some kind of sociological revenge - as you say, it's about righting the wrongs of hateful representation. But then there's someone like John Waters who makes women and queer people the fool while simultaneously accepting/celebrating why their differences. Of course, to do this, to do what John Waters does, is to run the risk of offending modern sensibilities or just flat out disgusting someone which ultimately makes his works more niche.